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Land Transport Act 1998

Mitigation of penalties and rights of appeal - Grant of limited licence

104: Issue of limited licence to be delayed or prohibited in certain cases

You could also call this:

“Rules for getting a limited licence after losing your regular licence”

You can’t get a limited licence for at least 28 days after your disqualification starts if you’ve been convicted of certain offences. These offences include breaking driving hours or logbook rules, dangerous driving, careless driving causing injury or death, not stopping after an accident, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving while disqualified, or having an insecure load on your vehicle.

You can only get a limited licence for a type of vehicle if you had a licence for that type right before you were disqualified. This includes any special endorsements you had.

You can’t get a limited licence to conduct driving tests, work as a driving instructor, or drive in a passenger service. However, if your licence was suspended only because of demerit points, you might be able to get a limited licence for passenger service.

Before the court makes a decision about your limited licence, everyone who has written a statement supporting your application usually needs to come to court to answer questions about what they wrote. This only happens if both sides agree it’s necessary.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM435078.

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103: Persons who may apply to court for limited licence, or

"Who can ask the court for permission to drive sometimes after losing their licence"

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105: Court may make order authorising grant of limited licence, or

"Court can allow a special driving permit if your licence is taken away"

Part 8 Mitigation of penalties and rights of appeal
Grant of limited licence

104Issue of limited licence to be delayed or prohibited in certain cases

  1. No order may be made under section 105 that authorises a person to obtain a limited licence before the expiration of 28 days from the date the order of disqualification takes effect if the person is disqualified on conviction—

  2. for an offence against this Act or the Transport Act 1962 involving driving hours or logbooks; or
    1. for an offence against any of sections 35, 36, 38, and 39 (which relate to reckless or dangerous driving, careless or inconsiderate driving causing injury or death, and failing to stop after an accident); or
      1. for an offence against any of sections 56, 57A, 57B, 57C, 58, 60, 61, and 62 (which relate to offences involving alcohol or drugs); or
        1. for an offence against section 33(1) (which relates to applying for or obtaining a driver licence while disqualified from doing so); or
          1. for an offence against section 42 (which relates to insecure loads on vehicles).

            1. An order may be made under section 105 authorising a person to drive a motor vehicle of a particular class only if the person held a driver licence or endorsement for that class immediately before he or she was disqualified.

            2. No order may be made under section 105 authorising a person to drive a motor vehicle—

            3. for the purposes of conducting driving tests or acting as a driving instructor; or
              1. in a passenger service, unless the accumulation of demerit points is the only reason for the suspension of that person's driver licence.

                1. Unless the parties agree in a particular case that compliance with this subsection is not required, no order may be made under section 105 until every person who has made an affidavit filed in support of the application for the order has appeared before the court for examination on the contents of his or her affidavit.

                Compare
                Notes
                • Section 104(1)(c): amended, on , by section 32 of the Land Transport (Drug Driving) Amendment Act 2022 (2022 No 5).
                • Section 104(2): amended, on , by section 65 of the Land Transport (Road Safety and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2011 (2011 No 13).
                • Section 104(3): substituted, on , by section 58 of the Land Transport Amendment Act 2005 (2005 No 77).